Quaternary ammonium salts are frequently used for the antistatic finishing of synthetic fiber materials. However, these compounds frequently do not have adequate substantivity relative to synthetic fiber materials, particularly relative to polyamide fiber materials, so that finishing from an aqueous liquor by the bath exhaust process leads to unsatisfactory use of the bath. Furthermore, the antistatic effect is not always adequate.
Published Japanense Patent Application No. 26 523/67 describes sulfonate betaines, containing an alkyl radical having 12 to 16 carbon atoms, as antistatic agents for incorporation in plastics material. However, the antistatic effect of these compounds is not particularly high. Furthermore, German Auslegeschrift application (DOS) 24 09 412 also describes sulfonate betaines having a hydroxyalkyl derived from .alpha.-olefins and having 8 to 18 carbon atoms. These compounds have a relatively low water-solubility and are only recommended as antistatic agents for incorporation in plastic materials.